BOZEMAN — Helena native Bobby Daly is coming home.
A former standout linebacker at Montana State and the Bobcats' defensive coordinator in 2024, Daly is returning to his alma mater as DC, MSU announced Friday. Daly spent last season as the defensive coordinator at UTEP.
A 2004 graduate of Helena Capital High School, Daly was an assistant coach at Montana State from 2019 through 2024. He was previously the assistant head coach and linebackers coach before being promoted to defensive coordinator in 2024. He also retained his assistant head coach title and continued to coach the linebackers.
Shawn Howe was Montana State's defensive coordinator last season but recently left for a position with the Pittsburgh Steelers of the NFL.
In 2024 with Daly as DC, the Bobcats ranked 15th in the FCS in total defense, giving up 311.9 yards per game, and 11th in scoring defense, allowing 18.25 points per game. They had the No. 1 defense in the Big Sky Conference.
Montana State went 15-1, suffering its only loss to North Dakota State in the FCS national championship game. The Bobcats won the outright Big Sky Conference championship and were the No. 1 seed for the FCS playoffs.
Under Howe's tutelage last season, Montana State ranked 15th in the FCS in scoring defense (19 points per game) and 20th in total defense (328.8 yards per game) on its way to winning the FCS national championship. The Bobcats tied for third in the country with 27 takeaways.
In Daly's one season at UTEP, the Miners went 2-10 overall and allowed 30.4 points per game and 391.3 yards of total offense.
Daly's coaching career also includes a six-year stop at Idaho, where he first served as a graduate assistant before joining the staff full-time as the director of football operations and then the linebackers coach.
Among linebackers Daly has coached are Idaho’s Christian Elliss, now a member of the New England Patriots, and MSU star Troy Andersen, who is with the Atlanta Falcons. Callahan O’Reilly (2022) and McCade O’Reilly (2024) earned All-America honors under Daly’s guidance, along with first-team All-Big Sky Bobcats Josh Hill and Amandre Williams. Idaho’s Kaden Elliss also earned all-league kudos.
As a player from 2004-08, Daly was one of the best linebackers in Montana State history. He was a first-team All-American in 2007 and an honorable mention All-American in 2008. He had 382 tackles in his career, which are still the fourth-most by a Bobcat.
